of what they are
best fitted for, and are obliged to follow the wishes of others rather
than their own. This only we can say, that so far as we have a choice
we should adopt the calling that is most congenial to us and suits our
inclinations. "Grasp the handle of your being" was the direction given
by a wise counsellor to one who sought advice as to what calling he
should follow. Everyone has certain aptitudes, and as far as he is
able should keep them in view. There is often a distinct indication at
a very early period of life for what we are best fitted. "The tastes
of the boy foreshadow the occupations of the man. Ferguson's clock
carved out of wood and supplied with rudest mechanism; Faraday's tiny
electric machine made from a common bottle; Claude Lorraine's pictures
in flour and charcoal on the walls of the bakers' shops; Canova's
modelling of small images in clay; Chantrey's carving of his
school-master's head in a bit of pine wood,--were all indications clear
and strong of the future man."

(_b_) Whatever you resolve upon, keep to it. "One thing I do," is a
great rule to follow. It is much better to do one thing well than many
things indifferently. It may be well to have "many strings to our
bow," but it is better to have a bow and string that will every time
send the arrow to the target. A rolling stone gathers no moss. He
that is everything by turns and nothing long comes to nothing in the
end.

If thou canst plan a noble deed
And never flag till it succeed,
Though in the strife thy heart should bleed,
Whatever obstacles contend,
Thine hour will come, go on, thou soul!
Thou'lt win the prize, thou'lt reach the goal.
CHAS. MACKAY.

(_c_) The higher our purpose is, the greater our attainment is likely
to be. The nobler our ideal, the nobler our success. It seems
paradoxical to say it, but it is true, that no one ever reached a goal
without starting from it; no one ever won a victory without beginning
the battle with it; no one ever succeeded in any work without first
finishing it in his own mind.

Pitch thy behavior low, thy projects high,
So shalt thou humble and magnanimous be.
Sink not in spirit; who aimeth at the sky
Shoots higher much than he who means a tree.
G. HERBERT.

When we go forward to life we should make up our mind what we intend to
make of life. Make up your mind after prayer to God, and work for that.

_The third essential to s